A Scout's Work Is Never Done
Darkmount Darkmount, ancestral fortress of the Decepticons. There have been three incarnations of the Decepticon capitol building; the original, built under Straxus' reign, was destroyed in the early days of the War. The second collapsed into its own smelting pits during the battle between Galvatron and Avatar the Usurper. The third stands before you now. The Darkmount compound first presents a curtain wall patrolled by drones and studded with laser cannons. Behind this stands the hunched shapes of the drone factory, the shuttle hangars and their ancillary buildings. Looming over it all is Darkmount itself, a faceless and unlovely edifice sixteen hundred meters tall, about which flights of Decepticons circle like roosting birds. Apart from the landing platform halfway up, it has no other visible apertures, no entrances at ground level. The only beings that enter Darkmount by choice can fly. At night, the tower is lit sporadically by the swaying searchlights below, having only a few running lights along its forward edge and around the landing platform. Darkmount's dull black facets are usually visible against the night sky only by virtue of obscuring the stars behind the tower. Contents: Coldwar Coldwar says, "DEC-511 Coldwar preparing commencement of SAR of technologies matching energy signature of deactivated Autobot designation Wheeljack- Over." Dirge says, "Hrnh.. what have the dead left for us?" Jinx says, "You should totaly poke it with a stick!" Galvatron says, "What?! How could that happen? Did the Autobots just drop his body somewhere? That doesn't seem like those sentimental fools!" You begin following Coldwar. Coldwar stands at a termainal within the main foyer of the Decepticon Fortress known as Darkmount. A transmission sent to command outlining the mission paramaters of the Search and Recovery is followed by a brier setting of several navigation points that cover a large quadrant of the planet's surface. Busily tapping away at the console, Coldwar's hardened gaze is fixed and stoic as he draws up the mission plan while awaiting the arrival of his Wingman. Pyramid Fighter cruises in from the skies above, then transforms and hovers down to land next to Coldwar. "Cybertron, eh? I have to say, I admire the thouroughness. I'm ready when you are." Coldwar says, "Negative on waste management, My Emperor. Warfare Theorist Fusion is attempting to locate any lost technologies developed by the Autobot due to his perceived brilliance, My Lord- Over." Fusion transforms into robot mode. Galvatron says, "I see. Carry on, then!" Coldwar says, "Roger that, My Emperor." Coldwar looks up from the terminal after taking a moment to respond to Galvatron; his red optics focusing onto Fusion before offering the other Decepticon a curt nod. "Thank you, Warfare Theorist. Alright, lets get this show on the road..." Turning away from the computer console Coldwar takes a moment to peer out over the fortress, quietly taking inventory of the gumby squadrons that populate the base. Again, he nods- this time as if finding the Darkmount defenses 'adequate', and then the Soldier leaps into the air and transforms. "I've taken the libery of updating mission codes and parameters. Form on my wing, and lead the way." Gears grind, pistons pump, and sheets of metallic frame click into place to form a HV-911 Eagle Eye UAV! Coldwar says, "DEC-511 Coldwar reporting- SAR team codenamed Zulu Wing departing as scheduled- Over." Coldwar moves east to the Cybertronian Swamplands West. Coldwar has left. You follow Coldwar. You move east to the Cybertronian Swamplands West. Cybertronian Swamplands West The Swamp continues on for almost as far as the optic can see. In the shallows lie the corpses of Transformers who did not survive Megatron's reign or the cold, brutal efficiency of Shockwave, left in charge after Megatron left to pursue the Ark. No longer reflecting the bright gold that once covered the planet, the swamp's murky grey-blue wastewater now reveals various objects ranging from rusted, acid-eaten corpses to worthless scrap to the ancient assault vehicles that once attempted to bombard the fortress that lies to the east. Contents: Eagle Eye UAV Fusion keeps pace with the UAV, actually flying in an overwatch position high overhead. << I don't know why I didn't think of this before, but for every year the Autobot Wheeljack spent on planet Earth, he spent thousands on Cybertron.>> Coldwar speeds ahead at lower altitude, making it just that much easier for his advanced scouting systems to keep a watchful eye on anything they might miss. <> he says, which is followed by a chime that sounds over the shortband transmission frequency. Eyeing the swamps as the pair of aerial Decepticons slowly pass it by, Coldwar would nod if he could but is forced to settle for speech. <> Fusion rolls to one side and then the other, trying to give himself a better angle for scanning the swamps below. << Sounds reasonable,>> he affords. <>